All posts by Rand Simberg

It’s Only Torture When We Do It

Even when we don’t. Don Surber, on continuing self immolation of the New York Times.

[Update in the afternoon]

OK, I don’t have a lot of time for this, but I’m seeing a lot of nonsense being spouted in the comments section.

Yes, perhaps it isn’t, or shouldn’t be, news that Al Qaeda tortures people. But many people seem to not know that, or have forgotten it, particularly when the major thrust of the news coverage is how awful America is.

Yes, we are supposed to be the good guys. And you know what? We are. When an Abu Ghraib happens, we investigate it, and we try people, and we punish them, and that happens even without the New York Times running it on the front page for weeks on end. When Al Qaeda does it, as prescribed by their training manuals, they, and millions of their supporters in the Muslim world, ululate and cheer.

But somehow, the New York Times and the other enablers of the enemy in what is fundamentally an information war, can’t be bothered to point that out, or point out the differences, instead descending into hand wringing and moral equivalence, in an apparent effort to cast doubt on the goodness of our own society and values, and even whether or not they’re worth defending.

[Saturday morning update]

Follow-up post here.

No, I’m Not Dead

But I’m having a hectic week. I went from the conference in Dallas on Sunday to Missouri for a family barbecue, then spent another three days there while also working. I flew back to Florida last night, but we had flight delays due to severe weather in Dallas, and didn’t get in until about 1 AM. Then, after about three hours sleep, I got up and drove back to the airport and got on a plane to DC, where I am now, having worked all day on a client presentation for tomorrow. Probably won’t come up for air until the weekend.

No, I’m Not Dead

But I’m having a hectic week. I went from the conference in Dallas on Sunday to Missouri for a family barbecue, then spent another three days there while also working. I flew back to Florida last night, but we had flight delays due to severe weather in Dallas, and didn’t get in until about 1 AM. Then, after about three hours sleep, I got up and drove back to the airport and got on a plane to DC, where I am now, having worked all day on a client presentation for tomorrow. Probably won’t come up for air until the weekend.

No, I’m Not Dead

But I’m having a hectic week. I went from the conference in Dallas on Sunday to Missouri for a family barbecue, then spent another three days there while also working. I flew back to Florida last night, but we had flight delays due to severe weather in Dallas, and didn’t get in until about 1 AM. Then, after about three hours sleep, I got up and drove back to the airport and got on a plane to DC, where I am now, having worked all day on a client presentation for tomorrow. Probably won’t come up for air until the weekend.

Flexibility

Jeff Foust has a report on three of the talks at this weekends ISDC, on the importance of being willing to rethink plans, improvise, and make rapid changes to them. This is something that small private companies are a lot better at than large ones, or government bureaucracies, which is one of the reasons that they’re likely to beat NASA back to orbit post Shuttle, or on to the moon.